Speak softly.
“Release Cassandra, Sir Reginald. She’s innocent.”
In the clearing properly, he allowed his hands to drop and shifted his body. Using shadows and distraction to his advantage, Seth drew his pistol, hiding it in his sleeve. He continued speaking to Sir Reginald as if he were a child.
“This is about Charles, isn’t it?” Sir Reginald sucked in a sharp breath at the name, and Seth moved forward. “I’mresponsible for his death. Let Cassandra go, and killme.”
“Seth, no.” Cassandra sobbed. “Seth, you don’t have to do this. Sir Reginald, your son would not want you to do this!”
Sir Reginald ignored her.
“It’s not enough for you to die. You deserve to suffer! Like mysonsuffered! Like I have suffered every night since his passing! I have nothing because of you! My family isgone! Why should you get to have one?”
Seth continued to stalk cautiously forward, keeping his voice low and even.
“You’re right… I don’t deserve a family… but Cassandradoes. Shedeserves to go home to her sister… Caroline is seventeen. Isn’t that right… Cassandra?”
Seth held his own pistol against his fingertips andwaited.
“E-eighteen in J-January.” Trickles of sweat formed at Cassandra’s brow and fell, one bead catching on the barrel at her temple. “On the t-twelfth.”
“Weeks away.” Seth kept his eyes trained on Sir Reginald, saw his resolve waver with each word, the pistol lowering slowly. “Caroline needs her sister for her debut next year… their mother passed. You remember Catherine Cooper? That’s her daughter in your arms…”
“Stop talking!”
“Her brother… Matthew? He would be lost without her—”
When Seth took another step closer, Sir Reginald wrenched Cassandra backwards, pulling her toward the other exit, putting space between them. The wind rustled through the hedges, and behind Sir Reginald, Seth sawmovement.Moonlight glinted off a familiar pair of eyes, and Seth stood as still as he dared to not draw attention to the newcomer.
He neededtime, and the rightangle.
“I saidstop!”Sir Reginald shouted.
All he needed wasoneexactrightmoment.
“Cassandra didn’t take away your family.Idid,” Seth said. “So let her go, and we can settle this between men.”
“Men?!” Sir Reginald’s shrill voice stabbed into the night. “Amanwouldn’t have let another burn to death! Amanwould have some accountability!”
“I did everything I could.” Seth took a step closer. If he reached out, he could grab Cassandra. “I went into that fire prepared to die for him. I wished it had been me.”
The shadow in the hedges stepped closer, but Seth couldn’t focus on them, couldn’t take his eyes off the man in front of him, couldn’tlook away fromCassandra.
“That isn’t enough! But it will be when shedies.” Sir Reginald’s voice shook with the pistol in his hands, breaking down with each second that passed. He jerked Cassandra out of reach and to his side. Enraged beyond reason, he was going to shoot hernowand the last of Seth’s orders shouted in his mind.
Use lethal force when necessary.
Seth raised his pistol.
I’m the best shot in the country. I’m five feet away. One second. Wait for theperfectsecond.Focus!And for God’s sake, steady your hands!
“Stand down, or I’ll kill you,” he threatened.
Sir Reginald barked out a laugh, cruel and tortured.
“Yes, that is what you do, Mr. Reeves. Youkillpeople. Well go ahead, I’m dying anyway. Bad heart. Before I leave this world you’llpayfor what you’ve done.” His face split with a victorious grin. “You might kill me, but not before I killher.”
Cassandra readjusted her hand, showing a flash of silver and black-blood rubies, and Seth realized for the first time that her hair wasdown.She held Lord Bolderwood’s hairpin like a dagger in her clenched hand, pointedbehind her, and Seth fought the urge to scream at her to stay her hand. But he couldn’tmove, couldn’t draw attention to her. He could only watch, rooted to the spot as time slowed. Sir Reginald placed his finger on the trigger at the same time Cassandra raised her arm.
